GOOD MORNING.

Here’s all the news that you need to know as you start your day. 

Mass shooting

1. A suspect is in custody after seven people were killed in two related shootings at a mushroom farm and a trucking firm in a coastal community south of San Francisco, according to officials.

San Mateo County Board of Supervisors president Dave Pine says four people were killed at the farm and three at the trucking business on the outskirts of Half Moon Bay, a city about 30 miles south of San Francisco.

The police have arrested 67-year-old Zhao Chunli in connection with the shooting.

Paschal Donohoe

2. Minister for Public Expenditure Paschal Donohoe is due to address the Dáil today and make a further statement involving his 2016 general election campaign and other matters raised by the opposition.

Donohoe will address the Dáil after Taoiseach’s Questions for 10 minutes, with each opposition group then given six minutes for a back-and-forth question and answer session before five minutes for Donohoe conclude proceedings. 

Children’s health

3. A parent has spoken of “trying to dig deep” for her son to get him seen by mental health services over the past year, as a report lays bare the inconsistent data around referrals for young people.

In an interview with The Journal, Fiona Cosgrave said it has been “sheer frustration” trying to get her 11-year-old son admitted into CAMHS for the past 18 months.

A damning report by the Mental Health Commission has noted how acceptance rates range depending on the regional Community Healthcare Organisation (CHO) where a family is situated. In one region it was over 80% but in another, only 30% of children were accepted for treatment.

Fatal attack

4. A man is expected to appear before a sitting of Cork District Court this morning over the killing of an an elderly patient in Mercy University Hospital.

Matthew Healy, an 89-year-old widower from Berrings in Cork, was killed in an attack at the hospital shortly after 5.30am yesterday.

A man, aged in his 30s, was arrested, detained for questioning and charged. 

Organ donation

5. Legislation regarding soft opt-out organ donation is to be debated before the Dáil today. 

Under the Human Tissue (Transplantation, Post-Mortem, Anatomical Examination, and Public Display) Bill, consent will be deemed unless a person has, while alive, registered his or her wish to not become an organ donor after death.

There will still be discussion with designated family members before organs are removed for transplant. 

Antarctica

6. A huge iceberg nearly the size of Greater London has broken off the Antarctic ice shelf near a research station, the second such split in two years.

The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) said the formation of the new iceberg – in a natural process called “calving” – was not due to climate change, which is accelerating the loss of sea ice in the Arctic and parts of Antarctica.

The iceberg, measuring 1,550 square kilometres, detached from the 150-metre-thick Brunt Ice Shelf a decade after scientists first spotted massive cracks in the shelf.

UK

7. The chair of the UK Conservative Party Nadhim Zahawi is set to face an ethics inquiry into his tax affairs as allegations against him piled pressure on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

Sunak ordered an investigation into Zahawi yesterday but resisted calls to sack the former chancellor over the multimillion-pound tax dispute he resolved by paying a penalty.

The inquiry  is expected to focus on Zahawi’s ministerial declarations but it could extend to his prior tax arrangement and whether he lied to the media. 

New Zealand

8. Outgoing New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern has spoken of her gratitude for her her time in office, insisting that a sustained barrage of online abuse was not the reason for her shock resignation.

The 42-year-old said last week she no longer had “enough in the tank” after a turbulent five years, during which she steered the country through natural disasters, its worst-ever terror attack and the Covid-19 pandemic.

Her resignation, less than three years after an emphatic election victory, has ignited a national debate about the vitriol faced by women leaders, especially on social media.

Journalism award

9. A Journal Media investigative series has been named the winner of the 2021 Mary Raftery Prize for social affairs journalism.

Maria Delaney, Michelle Hennessy, and Cormac Fitzgerald of Noteworthy and TheJournal.ie have won the award for “Tough Start: Is the Opportunity Gap for Traveller Children Ever Going to Close?”

The series delved into the uphill struggle facing Traveller children in healthcare, education, accommodation and justice across seven articles, a podcast and live event. It marks the third Mary Raftery Prize in a row for Journal Media.